Parole Board Decision

In the matter of the Corrections Act 1997

and

In the matter of an Application for Parole by MJB

25 May 2007

Reason for Decision

The Applicant is presently in custody in relation to the following crimes:

1. burglary;
2. abduction of a young person;
3. 2 counts of indecent assault; and
4. 1 count of aggravated sexual assault.

In relation to those crimes the Applicant was sentenced to a period of five years imprisonment and it was ordered that it not be eligible to be considered for parole until serving three years of sentence.

The Applicant has been eligible to be considered for parole since 16 December 2006. The Applicant delayed his application for parole to enable him to complete the Sexual Offender’s Treatment Program.

The Board has been provided with the comments on passing sentence made by Chief Justice Cox on 12 March 2004. The comments on passing sentence made by Chief Justice Cox when sentencing the Applicant fully outline the circumstances surrounding his crimes.

In relation to the Applicant’s personal circumstances His Honour made the following comments:

“You had an unfortunate childhood which lead to alcohol abuse at an early age. That in turn brought you into conflict with the law and from the age of seventeen, when you were first jailed for twelve months, you acquired a string of convictions for offences of dishonesty and drink driving. In 1977 you were jailed for five years for offences including robbery and abduction. You continued to offend after your release and in 1990 you were convicted of two charges of rape and one of abduction of a young woman three months after the episode of which I am now dealing. That lead to a five year jail sentence and you were paroled after serving three years. Since that time, you have not committed any serious offence and your life has stabilised both in terms of your family relationship and your employment.

I take note of Dr Sale’s report and I am prepared to accept that the prospects of your re-offending are probably low provided you don’t abuse alcohol and/or drugs.

The crime you committed was a disgraceful and callous one. You treated the child as an object to satisfy your lust and then discarded her, leaving her in an isolated place at night. It appears you then simply put the whole incident out of your mind as if it hadn’t happened at all. Three months later, as I said, you abducted and raped a young woman in the presence of your then seventeen year old son. Your sojourn in jail for that offence seems to have lead to a reappraisal of your life and to an improvement in your behaviour, but that does not lessen the gravity of your conduct in respect to the matters I have to deal with.

I take into account your cooperation with the police and your plea of guilty, which has brought some, but by no means all, closure to the victim and has spared her the trauma of giving evidence about it. I accept that you are remorseful about your conduct and that you have some insight into it.”

The Board has received advice from the Victims Assistance Unit that a number of victims are registered in relation to the Applicant’s crimes. The Board has been provided with a victim impact statement. The Board has read and carefully considered the victim impact statements provided to it.

The effect of this incident upon the victim and her family were adequately summarised by Chief Justice Cox when sentencing the Applicant on 12 March 2004. His Honour made the following comments:

“The impact of these events has been profound, not only on the child, who is now a young woman, but also on the rest of her family who are left with feelings of guilt at not being able to protect her and who have observed such profound changes in her since her ordeal. The young woman herself has experienced severe behavioural problems and psychological trauma which is outlined in the extensive report of the psychologist who continues to treat her. I am satisfied that your conduct contributed substantially to these problems.”

The victim and extended family of the Applicant have sought specific conditions in relation to the Applicant having chance contact with them by placing restrictions upon the Applicant’s ability to travel into the municipality and surrounding areas in which they live.

The Board will make specific conditions preventing the Applicant from having contact with his victims and his family and from entering into specified areas.

In considering the Applicant’s application for parole the Board has taken into account the statutory criteria which it is required to do so pursuant to the Corrections Act 1997.

The Board has taken into account the following matters when assessing the Applicant’s application for parole:

(i) a comprehensive pre-parole report prepared by his parole officer;

(ii) the Applicant’s prison record which can be described as exemplary;

(iii) a comprehensive report prepared by the facilitators of the Sexual Offender’s Treatment Program as a result of the Applicant completing that program; and

(iv) the Applicant’s prior convictions.

The Board notes that the offence for which the Applicant was imprisoned on 12 March 2004 was committed on 4 May 1990. As indicated by Chief Justice Cox when sentencing the Applicant some three months after committing these crimes, he committed the crimes of rape and abduction. He was convicted of the crimes of rape and abduction on 3 December 1990 and he was sentenced to a period of five years imprisonment.

The Board notes that in relation to those crimes the Applicant was released on parole on 6 September 1993 for a period of two years and two months. The Applicant successfully completed that period of parole.

The Board also notes that since that time the only offences committed by the Applicant can be described as breaches of the Traffic Act.

This was until the Applicant was convicted on 12 March 2004 for the offences upon which he is presently imprisoned which occurred on 4 May 1990.

The Board notes that in the space of some three months the Applicant committed the rape and abduction for which he received a period of imprisonment of five years and the crimes for which he is presently in custody for which he was sentenced to a period of imprisonment of five years with a non-parole period of three years.

The Board notes that the treatment the Applicant received in the Sexual Offender’s Treatment Program also dealt with the rape and abduction for which he was convicted in 1990.

As a result of participating in the Sexual Offender’s Treatment Program the Applicant has prepared a Relapse Prevention Program, which will assist him in identifying factors, which will cause him to re-offend.

The Applicant will also undergo counselling upon his release from prison organised through the Salvation Army.

The Applicant was, questioned at length by the Board, as to the circumstances surrounding the rape and abduction for which he was convicted in 1990 and the circumstances surrounding the present crimes for which he is in custody.

The Applicant indicated that at the time that these offences were committed he had separated from his wife and that he was abusing alcohol heavily.

The Applicant stated that he was unable to communicate effectively with his family and was suffering from depression.

The Applicant accepts that whilst the matters he put to the Board provides some explanation for his conduct it in no way justifies him acting in the manner that he did.

After his release from prison in 1993 the Applicant sought treatment for his alcohol addiction. The Applicant has continued treatment for his alcohol addiction until his recent period of incarceration. The Applicant no longer consumes alcohol and the Board will be making specific conditions in relation to his alcohol consumption.

The Applicant indicated to the Board that he found the Sexual Offender’s Treatment Program to be of benefit to him. He indicated that the program gave him a greater insight into the conduct, which lead to him offending. In particular the Applicant has indicated that he now has a closer relationship with his wife and family.

The Board notes that the Applicant has undergone a number of conditional periods of release pursuant to section 42 of the Corrections Act 1997. Such periods of release have been spent in the company of his family and have occurred without incident.

The Board notes that the Applicant will have stable and suitable accommodation upon his release from prison and the potential exists for him to obtain employment.

The Board notes that the Applicant has completed the parole awareness program.

The Board notes that the Applicant has previously successfully completed a period of parole in 1993 and that from that point onwards until he was convicted of the offences for which he is presently incarcerated he only committed minor offences against the Traffic Act.

The Applicant submitted to the Board that he had made substantial efforts not to re-offend in any manner since being released from prison in 1993.

The Applicant held employment during that period of time. In all respects the Applicant has complied with conditions of parole previously imposed upon him and not committed any further crimes of a serious nature.

In all of the circumstances the Board is of the view that the Applicant meets the statutory criteria to be granted parole.

Paroled 12 June 2007 – 16 December 2008